Bali: A Shrinking Island

Bali's Land Mass is Shrinking Due to Degradation.

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(8/2/2010)

The Jakarta Post has re-sounded the warning that Bali's land is under genuine threat with the amount of "critical land" now put at 51,107 hectares equivalent to 9.1% of the entire land mass of the island. Critical land refers to land areas that have suffered significant degradation through physical, chemical or biological damage.

I Wayan Restu, a respected researcher at Bali's Udayana University's Center for Environmental Research outlined the widespread nature of the threat, saying: "Plots of critical land were found inside and outside the island's forested areas. In Buleleng, Bangli, Karangasem and Klungkung we came across critical lands inside the forested areas."

Badly affected are forested areas in Bali with 18,450 hectares or 14.1% of all forested areas in Bali on the critical list. Worst affected is the off-shore island of Nusa Penida where 13,825 hectares of land is listed as "critical."